Upon The Age of Innocence
by VixenBlueEyes
Summary: Meet Kate Farber. HighSchooler and new intern for the CSI Nightshift. Chapter six now up. Contains femslash.
1. The New Guys

DISCLAIMER: With medication and therapy, I might one day admit they don't belong to me, but I don't want to get sued, so CSI: and all its affiliates belong to Jerry Bruckheimer Television, Alliance Atlantis, and CBS Productions.

ARCHIVING: Ask nicely and I might be willing to think about it.

FEEDBACK: Yes! Oh, and review!

A/N: According to me, Mea Culpa (I think) never happened. Although, Ecklie is Administrator still.

* * *

**C**atherine Willows walked quickly down the halls, silently venting to herself about the newest boneheaded move by their sheriff. This was absolutely ridiculous, utterly and completely. Still entirely pissed, she stormed into her boss's office, a miniature hurricane to be dealt with. Her boss, Gil Grissom sat at his desk, pretending to be deeply interested in his paperwork. After almost twenty years of friendship, she knew him better than that. Silently, she dropped the memo down on his desk and flopped into one of the chairs that sat in front of his desk, huffing angrily.

"D'you believe this?" Catherine asked heatedly. "Can you actually believe this?" She nudged the paper with her booted toe, calming slightly. That was something she liked about Grissom, for some reason, he seemed to have this calming effect on her whenever she walked into his office. Either that or it was the fumes from all the chemicals in his 'experiments'. Looking up, Catherine saw him looking at her blankly, his blue eyes vague behind the rimless reading glasses.

"You have no idea what I'm talking about do you?"

Grissom shook his head, removing his glasses. "Not really."

"Of course you don't. That would mean you actually read your memos." She leaned over and picked up the paper, waving it under Grissom's face. "Sheriff Atwater has decided, in a stunning career move, that the Las Vegas CSI department, will host a forensic internship program. Day Shift will get one lucky applicant, and Night Shift will get one lucky applicant. For three weeks we will have some snot-nosed preppy kid following us around, taking notes and asking questions." Catherine sighed, letting the paper fall.

**P**ensively, Grissom picked up the memo and studied it thoughtfully. True enough, it was about the sheriff urging the shifts to 'treat them as one of their own.' More then likely, they'd be the ones with the most connections and probably wouldn't give a flip about the delicate nature of forensics. Grissom gave an inward shudder thinking about how these people would stand around looking bored, contaminating crime scenes, whining about wanting to go home. He was so deep in thought, he didn't hear Catherine start talking again. "Gil!"

"Huh?" He looked up from the memo.

Catherine grinned and shook her head. "God, first you don't even read memos, now I cant get you to put them down."

Grissom mock scowled at her, setting the paper down on his desk. Absently, he checked his watch. "What time will they be here?"

Catherine checked her watch as well. "Oh, about five minutes."

**"J**eez, I cannot believe my dad dragged me into this." Jason griped for about the hundredth time. "I could be at home studying for finals, but noooo, I have to be out here-"

"Would you quit your whining?" Kate rolled her eyes, frowning deeply. She was actually enjoying herself, unlike her companion, who looked about as happy as a wet cat.

"Of course you're having fun Kate, this is the kind of stuff you like doing."

Shaking her head, Kate followed Jason along the concrete terrace of the LVPD CSI building. Automatically, Jason pulled open one of the dark tinted glass doors and held it open for Kate. Jason wasn't a bad guy or anything, just not a very social one. Kate nodded in thanks and stepped through into the much cooler building. For a moment all she saw were green and grey hazes floating everywhere as her eyes adjusted from the harsh Las Vegas sun. When the lights finally faded, she was looking at a lobby with several waiting chairs, a large front desk, where a small mousy looking woman stood, talking on the phone. The entire scene was very calm and relaxed, due probably to the muted lighting and dark neutral tones of the walls and floors.

Jason stepped in, letting the door shut behind him. He came to stand just behind Kate, looking around silently. "Nice." He commented.

Kate nodded, already heading toward the front desk with Jason hot on her heels. Now that they were actually in a setting that required a human being to talk to another human being, he willingly let Kate take lead. The butterflies that had been fluttering around in Kate's stomach were threatening to grow larger with each step Kate took. She wasn't scared about meeting new people, she always looked forward to that. What she was scared about was messing something up, screwing up a case, something like that. _Don't worry, _that rational voice in her head told her, _its not like they're going to put you on an actual case._ By this time, Kate had made it to the front desk. The woman, who she assumed was the secretary, smiled politely, and looked at them through thick, black framed glasses.

"Hello, can I help you?"

Kate squashed down the flutters and smiled politely, leaning casually against the desk. "Yes, hi. I'm Kate Farber and this is Jason Anderson. Were here about the internship program."

The woman nodded and picked up the phone again. Dialing a number, she waited for someone to pick up.

"I'm Judy by the way."

Kate grinned genuinely this time. "Hi, Judy."

Judy smiled and continued waiting for whoever was on the other end to pick up. "Hello, can I help you?"

Kate turned to the source of the new voice. A man, probably in his late forties, early fifties was standing right beside her, looking half-way between annoyed and attempted pleasantness. Kate smiled bravely as Jason cowered behind her. Judy set down the phone quickly. "Um, Mr. Ecklie, this is Kate Farber and Jason Anderson, they're here for the internship program."

Mr. Ecklie's face changed from annoyance to whole-hearted... Kate hesitated to say happiness, for she didn't think the man capable of such an emotion from the pinched, drawn nature of his face. The closest it came to was a step above irritation. Nervously, he extended his hand toward her; Kate shook it, fighting back a grimace. His hand was cold and clammy, slippery with sweat. For some reason, he was nervous having the two there. Ecklie smiled quickly, then reverted back to a scowl. He looked around, trying to find someone. Kate snorted back a giggle at his obvious attempt to get them off his hands. "Jim!" He called out to a somewhat portly gentleman with thinning brown hair and a calm face. He'd been passing through the lobby, heading to the door when Ecklie called out to him. Kate saw his shoulders slump slightly at hearing his name, but turned with a neutral face and walked over to where they were.

"Yeah, Conrad. What do you need?"

Kate liked him immediately; he looked like a man who took no nonsense from anyone. Ecklie looked down at she and Jason, then back up at the man, Jim. "Kate, this is Captain of Homicide, Jim Brass, special to the CSI of the LVPD. You'll be working with the nightshift for the next three weeks."

Kate tried to withhold her enthusiasm and failed miserably. Shed heard a lot from her uncle Rory about the infamous LVPD CSI Nightshift, especially the illusive Gil Grissom. This might not be so bad after all. She looked to Captain Brass and smiled honestly, holding out her hand. "Nice to meet you Captain. Kate Farber."

The Captain shook her hand firmly and smiled, his blue eyes twinkling with some private joke.

**C**aptain Jim Brass didn't know what to make of the young woman standing in front of him. She couldn't have been more than seventeen, eighteen years old,

with a head of messy black curls and earnest green eyes. The grin on her face was captivating as she shook his hand enthusiastically.

"I'm really looking forward to these three weeks." She said with a grin.

Jim smiled, liking this Kate person already. "I hope you enjoy the learning process."

"I'm sure I will."

**T**he older man laughed at her answer softly. "I'm sure you will too." He said cryptically.

Turning, Captain Brass motioned for her to follow him down the hall. Kate looked to Jason, who seemed to be warming up. "Will you be okay?"

Ecklie spoke for him. "Ill make sure he gets to the right place." He placed a hand on Jason's shoulder. Jason looked terrified. Kate knew she shouldn't think it was funny, but she had to clamp her jaw shut for fear of laughing at the look on Jason's face.

"Have fun."

With that, she turned and followed the captain down the hall. They walked along in amiable silence, Kate too caught up in watching everything to try and make a conversation, and Captain Brass seemed comfortable enough with that. Kate looked through the glass walls as blond haired fellow gave a half grin, pulling something out of a large metal tank; in another room, a smaller guy with a drawn face was studying something intensely on a table. This was just too cool; Kate couldn't believe she was actually going to be learning about all this for the next three weeks.

Captain Brass stopped suddenly and Kate focused her attention to the front. An older gentleman, about Brass' age, with curly dark grey hair and a matching beard was approaching the Captain, two younger people right behind him.

"Brass," he said in annoyed tone, stopping a couple feet from where they stood, "did you get the warrant for the Gregory case?"

"I'm working on it." Brass responded patiently.

"How can you be working on it? We presented the evidence clearly, what's Judge Halton waiting for, Christmas?" The man's blue eyes flashed angrily. "Were going to lose that evidence."

Brass put his hands up to calm the man. "I know, I know. Listen, I will go talk to Judge Halton, see if I can speed things up. In the meantime, this is Kate Farber, she's here about the internship program." Kate struggled to keep a straight face. That was a quick subject change if shed ever heard one. Brass laid a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Kate, this is Gil Grissom, supervisor of nightshift. Behind him, are Nick Stokes and Warrick Brown."

Kate glanced to Mr. Grissom's two companions. A smaller young man with buzzed black hair and sharp brown eyes, tanned and muscular; and a taller African-American guy with blazing green eyes and a brooding frown. They nodded respectively. Kate turned her attention back on Mr. Grissom, who was studying her calmly. He did not look happy to see her. Trying her best to remain polite, Kate smiled gently. "Mr. Grissom, its a pleasure to finally meet you."

**G**rissom hadn't been expecting someone like Kate Farber. Maybe a bleached blonde with tight clothes or some acne ridden, glasses wearing teenager, but not someone who actually looked eager to do this. The girls face was open, honest, he could tell she really was pleased to meet him. She wore a simple blue tank top and faded jeans, the old sneakers peeking out under the hems.

Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all. Grissom glanced at Brass, who was looking at him expectantly. It took him a moment to figure out that Brass was waiting for him to escort the new intern and show her the world of forensics.

"Oh, right. Uh, this way Ms. Farber." He nodded as he turned, motioning for her to follow him.

"Just call me Kate." She said politely.

Grissom saw Nick smirk out of the corner of his eye and gave him a warning look. While not particularly adept at politics, Grissom knew enough that they had to keep her happy in order to keep the sheriff happy. If not, they'd all be in a lot of trouble.


	2. First Day

Howdy people! Wow, four reviews already! Thank you so much for your encouragement, it really meant a lot. Since you guys have been so nice, here's chapter 2!

A/N: If F/F relationships aren't your thing, you obviously didn't read the author's note in the first chapter. Also, I don't know what it is about the insistence of getting Sara hurt. It's freaky.

A/N 2: Sorry about the last chapter, the computer in my room refuses to upload stories and so I have to email every new chapter to my dad's laptop and it comes out in one column, blah, blah, blah.

Dialogue heavy chapter, sorry, but I was trying to get a little of Kate and Catherine interaction here.

* * *

**K**ate made pleasant small talk with Nick Stokes and Warrick Brown as they walked down the halls. She was a naturally social person and most people took a liking to her fairly quickly. It wasn't long before she discovered that Warrick was born and bred in Las Vegas, just like herself, and that Nick was from a little town in Texas where his dad was the local judge. Soon enough, she was laughing as Nick regaled her with the hijinks he and his fraternity friends

pulled off in college. Grissom was a little ahead, walking in silence, but somehow she knew he was listening.

"Grissom!"

Kate looked to the front again; a woman was coming at them full speed, looking pissed. Her strawberry blonde hair streamed behind her, resembling a comet's tail. Kate felt like cowering in fear all of a sudden from the mere presence of the woman; the anger emanating from her was enough to send shivers down Kate's spine.

"Uh, Griss, I just remembered, I've got that... that um, thing to work on in the lab. I'll uh, see you later."

Nick quickly turned and slipped out, heading in the opposite direction, Warrick not far behind. Kate bit back a laugh at the look she'd seen on the CSI's face. Pure and utter fear. Grissom's body language however, was strangely calm and collected. Heels clicking loudly in the now empty hallway, the woman came to a halt a few feet from Grissom. Kate took a few steps backward, hiding behind the supervisor's stocky frame.

"Yes, Catherine. How can I help you?" He asked patiently.

"You can help me by not sticking me with a 419 and no help whatsoever. I mean, I know you've got to deal with this internship, but you're still supervisor. Having seniority does not make me a superhero. You're going to have to give me someone."

"Take Sara with you."

"I can't."

"Why not?"

Catherine blinked incredulously, irritation growing on her face. "Because," she replied tightly, "she's on leave for about three weeks more, laid up with a broken kneecap. Remember, two months ago when she slipped on the stairs and fell?"

Grissom ducked his head, suddenly finding the linoleum floors extremely intriguing. "Sorry," he mumbled apologetically, "I forgot."

Kate hung back, not wanting to intrude on the awkward moment. The tension passed when Catherine sighed. "It's okay Gil. Can you give me Nick?"

Grissom shook his head. "Sorry, he and Warrick are working that DB on the Strip."

"Greg maybe?" Catherine asked hopefully.

"Sorry, he's helping me with the Gregory case." Moving with sudden inspiration, he spun around and laid eyes on Kate, who smiled nervously. "Here, this is Kate Farber, she's the new intern. This will be a good learning experience for her." Gently, but hurriedly, he pushed Kate forward under Catherine's annoyed glare. Kate felt completely exposed as the older woman's brilliant blue eyes took her in, mouth twisted into a frown. She couldn't help but feel like some sort of unsavory pet that had been forced upon the adults and they were each trying to dump her on one another without appearing totally heartless. Instead of getting angry about being unwanted, Kate found it strangely amusing.

Catherine sighed, making a decision. "Fine, come on." She quickly turned and headed back down the hall, leaving Kate just standing there in awe of this sudden decision. Grissom had since disappeared somewhere. Catherine whirled around to look back at her, still looking pissed. "Are you coming or not?"

"Uh, yeah. Hold on." Kate jogged slightly to catch up with the CSI as they made their way out to the parking lot. It was then Kate noticed the silver suitcase Catherine held loosely in her left hand. They passed Judy again on the way out and Kate nodded and waved politely. Catherine walked in silence with Kate almost running to keep up with her long strides. Catherine had to be at least 5 inches taller than her with longer legs than Kate could dream of. She moved like a dancer and Kate idly wondered what Ms. Willows did before she became a CSI. In the back of her mind, she could vaguely remember her Uncle Rory once going on about someone named Catherine being an 'exotic dancer' but she'd been too young to ask any more questions.

By the time they reached the issued Denali, Kate was panting slightly with the exertion. Catherine watched her with barely hidden amusement. "Did I wear you out?" She asked, a bit too happily.

Kate nodded, giving in gracefully. "Yeah, a little. Usually I can keep up fairly well, I play a lot of sports and stuff, but I've been out with a bad case of bronchitis the last few months so I haven't been able to do he stuff I used to do without wheezing like an asthmatic." She leaned against the navy blue SUV to catch her breath, not seeing the pained look that flashed across Catherine's face.

* * *

**S**he didn't know that bronchitis was the reason behind Kate's wheezing. She'd just thought this was some air-headed bimbo with no muscle whatsoever. When she actually stopped and listened it sounded exactly like when Lindsey had just been getting over the same thing when she was about five; Catherine cursed herself for not noticing it earlier. It was so obvious; in her irritation at Grissom's air-headedness, she'd just taken out her proclivity to giving the cold shoulder on this poor intern. She watched as Kate leaned her head against the Denali's door, breathing deeply to try and even it out.

Taking one last deep breath she looked at Catherine and gave her a sweet, honest grin. "Shall we?" Shoving a tangle of ebony curls out of her face, she walked around the front of the Denali to get in the passenger's seat.

Catherine shook her head in confusion at this girl's cheerfulness. Most people would be defensive and moody if someone had just made fun of them for no reason. Pushing the thoughts to the back of her head, Catherine climbed into the SUV. Kate sat, staring out the window absently, an absent grin on her face. She looked over to Catherine who was starting up the car.

"So, where are we going?"

Catherine pulled the Denali into gear and carefully backed it out of its parking space; she didn't answer until she was out on the street. "We have a 419, that's a homicide, and a robbery on the strip."

"What happened?"

Catherine looked over at her; Kate was watching her curiously. "Uh, guy walks in the store, demands all the cash in the registers. Storeowner decides to play cavalier, grabs the shotgun under the counter and tries to take out the guy himself. Robber was faster, plugs him, grabs the cash and runs."

Kate scoffed cynically. "Everyone insists on playing the hero."

Catherine furrowed her brows, surprised at this jaded view. "Well, what would you have done?"

"If I valued my life? I'd do what the guy said. I mean, he probably had insurance. Did the guy have any family or what?"

"Don't know yet."

Kate shook her head. "See, my dad's an anatomy professor at UNLV, he used to be a coroner. God, I'd go see him when he was a coroner and I'd be shocked how many times some person died because they tried to go and do something stupid and courageous."

"So you're saying that courage is overrated?" Catherine could not honestly believe she was having this conversation.

"No, but there is a fine line between bravery and stupidity. Bravery is doing something that you don't realize is brave at the time. Stupidity is doing something because you know it'll make you look good in the end." Kate went back to staring out the window. Her expression was vague, as if recalling a distant memory. Sara got the same look when she thought too hard about some of her more difficult cases; Catherine found it just as hard to endure from this girl as with Sara.

Trying to break the tension that had suddenly been created, Catherine turned on the radio, pleased to find her favorite station. A Carpenter's song was on and she was pleasantly surprised to see Kate mouthing along with the words.

"You like the Carpenters?" She asked innocently.

Kate nodded, perking up a little bit. "Yeah, my mom's a huge seventies fan, she always has it playing on the radio. Kind of grew on me I guess." Her face softened a little. "I get a bittersweet feeling whenever I hear a Carpenter's song though."

"Why?"

"I guess just because that they wrote such happy songs, but Karen Carpenter was such a sad person in real life. Every time I see a picture of her, I feel kind of guilty for liking her music so much, because I can't figure out if I should be happy or sad when I hear one of their songs." Kate's green eyes sought her out. "What do you think?"

Catherine stared ahead at the road for a moment, honestly considering her answer. She'd never really thought about it, but now that it was in her brain, she wanted to give a good answer. "I think…" she said slowly, "that it's good you enjoy their music. I think…I think that Karen Carpenter sang those songs so other people could be happy."

Kate's question was almost childlike. "But why didn't she keep any of the happiness for herself?"

Catherine struggled for an answer. Suddenly, the shrill scream of her cell-phone broke the quiet strain that had been growing once again. Pulling out the phone, she flipped it open, answering with a curt, "Willows."

"Will you PLEASE have a talk with YOUR daughter?"

"Hello to you too, Ms. Sidle." Catherine answered pleasantly, pulling into the parking lot of the scene. "What's up with Lindsey?"

"I don't know! That's the problem. She came storming home from Brittany's in tears and she won't talk to me. I have tried everything and it's starting to scare me."

"Well, when did she come home?"

There was a slight pause. "About five hours ago."

"She's been in her room that long?" Catherine asked, completely unsurprised. She sighed, knowing Kate was observing her inquisitively. "Put her on the phone."

There was another pause and she heard Sara calling Lindsey, telling her it was her mother. Something clicked and a sullen voice came on the phone. "Hello."

"Lindsey?"

"Yes?" Lindsey asked sulkily.

"Is everything all right? Sara told me you came home from Brittany's all upset and haven't come out of your room all afternoon."

"It's nothing mom, just a fight Brittany and I had. We'll be over it by tomorrow, Sara's just being paranoid."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, mom." Catherine heard Lindsey groan. "It's fine."

"Okay, put Sara back on the phone."

Yet another click. "Yeah?"

"She's fine. It's just a fight. Just let me know if she, I don't know, stops eating or suddenly starts giving away all of her personal belongings or something."

"Catherine!"

Catherine put up her hands in mock surrender. "Just kidding sweetie. Jeez, lighten up. Listen, I'm at a scene. I'll see you tonight, okay?"

"Love you."

"Love you too. Bye." She hung up the phone to see Kate looking at her, eyebrow raised. "What?

* * *

**K**ate just shook her head. "Nothing."

"Okay." Catherine reached back and grabbed (what Kate assumed) her kit and looked at Kate calmly. "Now, don't touch _anything_. Understand?"

Kate nodded. "Yes ma'am."

"Are you going to touch anything?"

Kate shook her head. "No ma'am."

"Good." Catherine got out of the Denali and set her sunglasses on her nose. Kate took a deep breath, trying to settle her fluttering stomach. Okay, this was it. First day and already she was on a scene.

"Are you coming?" Catherine called.

Kate scrambled out of the SUV to catch up with the leggy blonde. The sudden assault of the Las Vegas sun hit her full blast as soon as she stepped out of the car. Kate had to blink for a few moments to get her eyes to adjust. Once everything wasn't in muted sepia tones anymore, she dashed across the parking lot only to stop mere centimeters from Catherine, nearly crashing into her as she was talking to a tall, round faced Hispanic man with heavy brows and a gloomy face. Panting, she rested her hands on her knees trying to catch her breath. Stupid bronchitis, screwing with her lungs. Now her mom would never let her play soccer next fall. There was a gentle hand on her shoulder and she looked up into two concerned blue eyes.

"Are you all right?" Catherine asked worriedly.

Kate nodded, making a thumbs up. "Lack of humidity dries out my lungs and I just ran across the parking lot. Sorry to scare you." Standing up, she stretched, trying to extend her diaphragm as much as possible. Catherine was still watching her anxiously and Kate smiled reassuringly. "Really, Ms. Willows. I'm fine."

Catherine gave her one last look before disappearing into the store. Kate looked to the Hispanic guy, who just shrugged. "She's like that."

Kate nodded and headed into the blessedly air-conditioned store. Vegas born and bred she may have been, but that didn't keep her from hating the heat with a vengeance. Taking a deep breath of the cool air, she spotted Catherine's blonde head poking out from behind the counter. Sticking her hands in her pockets, making good on her promise not to touch anything, Kate sidled up beside the wooden counter and peered over. Catherine and a small guy with thick, black-framed glasses and messy brown hair were looking at a guy in his mid-fifties with graying brown hair. Three red circles, about an inch in diameter spotted his chest. He was staring ahead, a surprised expression on his face. Kate was surprised to find herself surprisingly calm; then again, she'd seen her share of dead bodies with her dad's job. Keeping her hands in her pockets, she slipped around to the side to see better.

The guy with the glasses had a blue windbreaker on, CORONER in bold white letters along the back. He slid what looked like an oversized meat thermometer into a small incision in the man's abdomen. After a moment, he pulled it out again and checked the digital display. "Okay, TOD was approximately four hours ago." Tucking the thermometer into a box, her turned and seemed a bit surprised to see Kate standing there. "Oh, hello." He adjusted his glasses.

Catherine looked up from the body and seemed equally as surprised to see Kate there. "Uh, David, this is Kate Farber. She's an intern. Kate, this is David Phillips, assistant coroner."

Kate shook his hand, grinning. "Hi, nice to meet you."

David nodded politely and disappeared out the front door.

"Kate would you do me a favor? My kit's in front of the counter, would you open it up and grab two pairs of gloves?" Catherine looked at her expectantly. Kate nodded and picked up the case and opened it. She spotted the gloves easily enough and grabbed two pairs. Handing them to Catherine, she watched as the older woman put on one pair and handed the other to her. For a moment, Kate just stared at them stupidly. Catherine shook them in front of her face. "For God's sakes, put them on, I don't have all day!"

Kate grabbed the white, latex gloves and slipped them on, waiting for Catherine to tell her what to do. She really didn't want to mess anything up on her first day. Kneeling, she watched as Catherine checked over the man. "Three bullet holes to the front." She muttered to no one in particular. "Looks like the perp shoved him out of the way to get to the register." Kate patiently waited as Catherine finished her cursory exam.

There was the sound of a bag being unzipped and Kate looked behind her to see David and a younger man standing there with a body bag. Kate and Catherine stepped out of the way to let the coroners do their job. Neatly, they zipped up the bag with the body in it and slowly held it up, dropping it onto a gurney. Kate watched distractedly as they wheeled it out.

"Kate!" She turned to see Catherine glaring at her. "If you're going to work with me, you need to stay focused all right?"

Kate nodded. "Yes ma'am."

"Are you being cute?" Catherine asked irritably.

"Beg your pardon?"

Catherine's eyes flashed. "With the 'yes ma'am' and 'no ma'am. Are you trying to be funny?"

Kate desperately searched for an answer that wouldn't piss off the CSI. "N-no, ma'am. That's just how I was raised. I was brought up to treat my elders with respect, no matter what. If it bothers you, I can try to stop."

Catherine looked at her with a curious expression. "No, no. It's all right." She sighed, putting her hands on her hips. "Okay, Kate…I want you to…" Catherine tried to think of something. "Damn you Grissom." She muttered. "Okay, for right now, just watch me, all right? Can you do that without touching anything?"

Kate nodded, happy to just be doing something.

An hour and a half later, she was still happy just being able to be here. Catherine was fingerprinting the register, lightly powdering the drawer and checking for any prints. Setting the jar down, she laughed softly. Bending over, Kate saw two distinct markings of thumbprints on the middle of the drawer, making out that someone grabbed it and pulled it open. She scoffed again.

"Got a criminal genius on your hands here."

Catherine grinned wickedly, tape-lifting the print. With a pen, she wrote the identification on it and handed it to Kate, who set it with all the other evidence Catherine had collected. Closing the fingerprint powder lid, Catherine reached to her waist and swore softly. She looked at Kate, blowing the hair out of her eyes. "Kate, I left my cell in the car. It's on the dashboard, could you run out and get it for me?"

Kate nodded and turned, jogging out into the now dark parking lot. Streetlights illuminated the Denali enough for Kate to see where it was. Thankfully, it was unlocked and Kate easily found the cell resting on top of the dashboard, right where Catherine said it would be. Holding it lightly in her hand, Kate made her way back to the store. Inside it was still lit like before, but Kate suddenly had a terrible feeling in her stomach. Catherine was nowhere to be found.

Worriedly, Kate looked around. "Ms. Willows? Hello, are you in here?"

She almost expected a call from the back, near the shelves, but there was no answer. Kate's stomach clenched even as she told herself there was nothing to worry about. Still, she stepped carefully on the wooden floors over to the register where she'd last seen Catherine. The older woman's blonde head was no longer visible from in front of the counters; Kate peered over the side and her entire digestive system dropped to her toes. Catherine Willows lay unconscious on the floor, a nasty cut on her forehead.


	3. Perhaps Not So Bad

God, this project is all consuming! Already chapter three! Sorry it's so short, but I've been assaulted with a wicked case of writer's block. Anolle, you are so sweet! Thank you so much for that compliment.

* * *

"**W**e need some help in here!" Kate shouted to the officer outside, hopping lithely over the counter. Very gently, she put two fingers to Catherine's throat to check for a pulse. It was there, a bit sluggish but even and strong. Hands shaking, Kate drew back, not wanting to contaminate the…evidence. A shiver of disgust ran through at the thought of referring to someone as 'evidence'.

"Is everything all right?" The officer peered over the counter and his eyes widened at the sight of Catherine on the floor.

Kate looked up at him. "Could you call an ambulance please?" The officer pulled his radio off of his hip and called for an ambulance. Kate slowly squatted beside Catherine, wincing at her knees cracking. Leaning over, she lightly nudged the woman's shoulder, thankful that she was still wearing the gloves. "Ms. Willows? Ms. Willows?"

Catherine moaned softly, but her eyes stayed closed. Taking a deep breath, Kate gently slapped the blonde's cheek, trying to get her to wake up. If she had a concussion, she needed to be conscious or it would get worse. "Ms. Willows, you need to wake up, okay? Catherine!"

Moaning again, Catherine's lids fluttered for a moment. "Not now Sara, I don't think the sun's even down yet." She muttered.

Kate blinked in surprise; okey-dokey, that was definitely different, but when her best friend Ashley fell out of the tree in her backyard and was knocked out for a minute, when she woke up she was going on about blue flying monkeys. Kate had gotten used to weird stuff. Shaking her head, Kate went on instinct. "Come on, Catherine. You need to get up, all right? Someone or something hit your head and I'm afraid you might have a concussion."

Catherine's blue eyes flew open and she sat up quickly, nearly bonking heads with Kate. "What!"

Kate held up the silver colored cell phone for all to see. "You sent me out to get your cell. I came back, I couldn't find you. I looked behind the counter, you were unconscious. That's probably why your head hurts so badly right now. Do you remember anything?"

**C**atherine stared at her hands, trying to remember anything. She'd been printing the counter, and there was a noise in the back. It only lasted for a second and then was gone; she'd chalked it up to just outside noises. She continued printing when she heard the noise again. That had freaked her out a little, but she had her gun, she wasn't completely helpless. She'd been watching Kate come back through the store window; she turned and there was a shooting pain in her head, then everything went dark. Catherine related all this to Kate who nodded, taking it all in.

Once she'd finished giving her 'statement', Catherine felt the throbbing in her head. Her entire skull ached like someone had taken a hammer to her brain. She could almost feel the blood pumping in her veins. But, it wasn't like this was a new thing. This was the second time she'd been attacked on a scene, not like that made it anymore easy to deal with. Tenderly, she fingered the cut on her head. It was bare inches from the one she'd gotten the last time.

Whoa, wait a minute. Catherine looked around, rising from the floor. Kate had since gone to stand at the door to wait for the ambulance. "Kate." She turned to look at her. "Tell the officer to come in here."

Kate nodded and called to the officer. Catherine crossed her arms over herself and stepped over to stand protectively beside Kate. She'd only just realized the perp might still be in there. Just because he (or she) had knocked her out, didn't mean he (or she) was smart enough to get the hell out of dodge. Officer Metcalf came ambling over, looking worried.

"You okay Catherine?"

Catherine nodded. "Yeah, just fine Joe. Listen, could you clear the scene again, for me?" She leaned in closer, not wanting to worry Kate. "The guy might still be in there."

Officer Metcalf nodded and clicked on the flashlight, stepping in just as the ambulance and an all-too-familiar Tahoe pulled in. Catherine cringed at the thought of having to deal with Grissom right now. But instead of the small, stocky frame of Grissom, a long-legged, muscular figure stepped out, looking _pissed._ The EMT's came out of the ambulance and swarmed around Catherine, pulling her to the box-like vehicle.

**K**ate watched, amused as Catherine kept insisting she was fine as the medics checked her out. Suddenly, there was a rough hand on her shoulder and Kate looked up into the very angry face of Warrick Brown. "Where were you when this went down?"

"I was-"

"Were you out here goofing off, getting bored? That's the life of a CSI sweetheart, it's long and it's boring. Deal with it. You do not leave the scene unless expressly commanded to do otherwise."

"That's what I was-"

"Don't give me excuses, all right?"

Miserably, Kate endured Warrick's lecture, knowing he was right. Well, there went the internship; she was pretty sure letting a CSI get hurt was something that qualified for here getting tossed out on her ass. Perfect, her first day and she screws everything up.

**C**atherine watched in hidden amusement as Kate morosely stood and listened to Warrick's protective ranting, staring intensely at her feet. Warrick was just being the older brother; he'd been the one on the scene when she'd gotten attacked from that home invasion, that on top of Holly Gribbs murder, which he still hadn't gotten over, it was a wonder he ever let her go out to a scene alone. When she felt like the lecture was getting a little too passionate, she decided to nip it in the bud.

"Warrick." She called patiently.

Warrick turned to look at her, along with Kate. "Warrick, I sent her out to get my cell from the car. She wasn't slacking off or getting bored, in fact she was being very helpful."

Kate's face lit up with the praise, while Warrick's jaw dropped slightly, apparently forgetting how to work his mouth. He turned back to look at Kate. "You didn't tell me that."

**K**ate shrugged helplessly. "I tried but you wouldn't let me say anything."

This time it was Warrick who ducked his head, embarrassed. "Sorry."

"It's okay. I understand." Kate shoved her hands in her pockets, looking around. "So, what now?"

"Now, you and Catherine are going back to the lab while I finish processing the scene."

"What!" Came Catherine's indignant cry as she rushed to his side. "What do you mean? This is my scene, I can finish it."

Warrick shook his head. "Sorry Catherine, Grissom's orders."

Kate tried to disappear as Catherine glowered angrily at Warrick; she almost looked like she was about to hit him for a second. Quickly, Kate racked her brain, trying to ease the pressure between the two. She knew she'd probably end up sans head, but it was better than a CSI assaulting a fellow CSI. She took a deep breath, silently rehearsing what she was going to say.

"Um, Ms. Willows."

Catherine turned her icy glare on Kate and the seventeen-year-old's insides turned to mush. Straightening her shoulder, Kate plowed on. "Um, maybe we should get back to the lab." Seeing Catherine's mouth open to speak, she beat her to it. "That way, you can um, you can show me all the other stuff that you guys do once you're off the scene. You know, DNA, fingerprints, stuff like that." Kate prepared herself for both barrels to unload but Catherine just stared at her thoughtfully.

**W**arrick watched the two women with a small smirk on his face. This girl was brave, taking Catherine on in her worst of moods. Even the bravest of CSI's, (save Grissom) were afraid of taking on 'Catherine the Great' when she was pissed. Eyebrow raised, he watched as Catherine glared at her for a moment, then calmed, raising her hands in defeat. Warrick blinked in surprise. Catherine was actually doing something other than what she felt like needed to be done; he stared in utter shock as Catherine told him about the evidence collected in the store, that she was going to take it back to the lab.

"Warrick!"

Warrick blinked out of his astonished reverie. "What?"

Catherine shook her head. "Did you hear a word that I said?"

Warrick nodded. "You're going to take the evidence back to the lab while I finish up here. I got it."

**K**ate grinned wryly at the amazed look she'd gotten from Warrick when she suggested actually going back to the lab. While she wasn't too eager to get back there, at least everyone had remained with his or her limbs intact.

Inside her head, a battle was waging on whether she would get kicked out or not. She had left the scene and Catherine had gotten hurt, but Catherine did send her out there to get her cell phone. Also, why was it her fault? The officer should have cleared the scene; it wasn't like there was much she could do faced off with an attacker. Then again, it might've distracted the guy long enough that the officer could have detained him. So it was her fault. Kate was miserable again and not even the promise of maybe seeing the inner workings of CSI could bring her up. It was her fault that Catherine had gotten hurt, and judging by the response from Warrick, it wasn't the first time Catherine had been hurt on a scene. Great, just perfect. On her first day, she screws everything up and everyone would be mad at her for letting a CSI with seniority get hurt on the scene. Bloody frickin' brilliant.

Someone tapped her on the shoulder, interrupting her thought process. "Kate!"

Blinking, she saw Catherine leaning down to look her in the eye. "Come on, it's time to go. The medics finally released me, but if I start swerving or pass out or something, make sure to call 911."

"That is if we're not dead by that time from you wrapping us around a telephone pole." Kate replied sarcastically, not knowing where this sudden boldness came from.

Catherine's lids lowered in a scowl. "Yeah." As she turned to get back to the Denali, Kate saw Warrick wink at her. Well, maybe this wouldn't be as bad as she thought.

On the ride back, Kate patiently tuned out Catherine's venting about Grissom taking her case and giving it to Warrick when he could even spare Warrick the first time she asked. Kate's mother did the same thing when she was mad and over the years, Kate had learned to just tune it out. She could still hear it, but it was like white noise, just another background noise. She knew Catherine was sounding mad to cover up the fact that she'd been scared, that much was obvious. Kate couldn't blame her either, it was probably a quite frightening experience.

Gradually, Catherine's rant died out, leaving just the radio. An unfamiliar song was playing, but it was pleasant and soothing. Kate chanced a glance at Catherine as she drove; her eyes were distant and weary, thinking about a million things at one time. "Are you okay?" She asked hesitantly.

Catherine blinked, looking over at her. "Huh?"

"Are you okay? You looked a little lost."

Shaking her head, Catherine smiled slightly. "Sorry, just drifting in my head."

"You sure?" Kate knew she was pushing it, but her compassionate instinct had kicked in and there was no use telling it to stop.

"Yeah. I'm fine."

Kate scrutinized her closely for a moment before dropping the subject. Better just to let sleeping dogs lie; she'd quickly figured out that trying to get information from the older woman that was deemed 'not worth sharing' was like pulling teeth. Mercifully, by that time, they'd pulled into the CSI parking lot. Catherine parked the Denali and quietly collected the evidence bags, handing half of them to Kate. They entered the building in amiable silence, only to be hit with the overwhelming presence of Nick Stokes and another, unfamiliar young man with spiky sandy brown hair and bizarre clothing when they entered the evidence room.

"Catherine, we heard you got attacked. Is it true?" Nick sounded worried. "Are you okay?"

Catherine shook her head, setting the bags down on the table. Kate remained by the table, keeping quiet, staying out of the conversation.

"Nick, I'm fine. Really. It's no big deal."

"But Catherine, it is a big deal. You could've really been hurt." The young man said quietly.

"Greg, I am just fine. It is a cut to the head, I am not missing any limbs, okay?" Catherine gave the young man a pointed look. In an effort to change the subject, Catherine picked up a small bindle. "Greg can you show Kate where the DNA lab is. I think she might want to spend some time with Mia, learning the ropes."

The young man, Greg turned and his eyes widened, as if noticing Kate for the first time. This was unsurprising to Kate; she was used to fading into the background once she entered a room. It was a blessing and a curse. Greg grinned politely, extending his hand. "Hello, Greg Sanders. And you are?"

Kate cocked an eyebrow, she knew a flirt when she saw one and Greg Sanders was an imitable flirt. Taking the offered appendage, she shook it. "Kate Farber."

"She's the new intern, so don't go scaring her off." Nick said good-naturedly. "He's harmless. If he gets to be too much, just swat him on the nose and say 'NO'. He's usually very well behaved. We've almost got him housetrained."

Greg shot the older man a glare and hissed. "Buzz off, Tex."

Nick gave an expression of mock hurt, clutching his heart melodramatically. "Oh, Greg. You wound my fragile soul."

"Yeah, yeah." Catherine swatted him on the arm, shooing him out of the room. "Get to your own case Nicky."

Nick paused at the door. "You're sure you're all right?" He asked Catherine, truly worried.

This honest level of compassion that this man was showing oddly touched Kate. She could tell both Greg and Nick cared dearly for the blonde. Catherine smiled indulgently and nodded. "Yes, Nick. I'm fine."

Nick nodded, grinning at Kate. "Nice seeing you again Kate."

With that he popped out. Catherine looked to Greg expectantly. "Greg, could you please show Kate to the DNA lab?"

"What? Oh, yeah, right." Grabbing the bindle, Greg took her arm and gently led Kate out of the evidence room. As they walked down the hall, Greg grinned down at her. "Pretty cool huh?"

Kate nodded. "Oh, yeah. This is the coolest thing ever." Her reply was honest, with no hint of sarcasm.

Greg quickly led her to a small lab off to the side, where a tall, slender African-American woman was sitting, reading over something. Greg knocked lightly on the doorjamb, causing her to look up. "Mia, DNA from Catherine's case. Oh, by the way, this is Kate Farber, she's the new intern."

Mia looked at him as if to say, 'so what?' She nodded politely to Kate, who waved slightly. "Hi."

"Do you mind if she hangs here for a little while, sees the deep mysteries to DNA?" Greg asked.

Mia blinked for a moment, opening her mouth as if to object. Once again, Kate waited for the inevitable excuse. She was too busy, backed up, she didn't need someone hanging over her shoulder, anything. Instead, Mia shrugged, going back to her paperwork. "That's fine."

Kate was surprised once again; it was beginning to look like her expectations were being surpassed with this internship. Greg handed Mia the bindle and winked at Kate and disappeared. Mia held the bindle and smiled gently at Kate. "Welcome to DNA."

* * *

_Feedback pleeeeeze! You guys were so nice before even though it's really not that good. Longer chapters coming, I promise!_  



	4. New Evidence

A/N: Here is the good Sara/Cath stuff! Lotsa Sara, lotsa Cath, lotsa Grissom. Enjoy. I couldn't remember where Catherine lives; all I could recall was 'Coral' so I just ran with it. If anyone knows what her address is, just let me know. Small spoiler for Pledging Mr. Johnson. Thank you so much for your encouraging reviews! x-sara-x sorry about such a lack of Sara in this part, but I'm saving her for later. Be patient!

Disclaimer: CSI: and all its, blah, blah, blah, you can find it in the first chapter. From my second chapter however, I do not own any of the Carpenter's songs, thought I don't whom they technically belong to. If you choose to sue me, you'll get about two dollars and all my Angelina Jolie photos. ;)

* * *

**K**ate enjoyed sitting in the DNA lab with Mia. Unlike most people, she patiently listened to Kate's questions and answered with a gentle, soft spoken voice. If Mia disliked having Kate sitting there with her, she was kind enough not to show it. But Kate got the feeling she was growing on the lab tech. She even went so far as to teach her the basics of DNA profiling. She'd watched in awe as Mia carefully collected evidence from swab Catherine had gotten from the scene and put it in the machine.

**M**eanwhile, Catherine stood in the evidence room looking over the things she'd brought from the store robbery. This looked like it was going to be an easy open and shut case. Prints on the doorknob, prints on the register, prints on the counter, all sent to Jacqui. All three bullets appeared to be from the same gun, so Bobby said. DNA from the counter where it looked like the guy cut himself on the corner. She'd taken a swab from the cut on her forehead but didn't expect much. According to Vega, the guy was single, no children, just had a brother in Henderson who was coming to ID the body as soon as they could find him.

"Catherine."

Catherine looked up to see Grissom standing in the doorway, holding a folder. "Hey. Just looking over my case photos."

"Yeah, get them to Warrick when he gets back."

Catherine blinked in confusion. "Give them to...what?"

"Warrick's the lead CSI on this."

"What!" She asked sharply.

Grissom reached up and pinched the skin under the nosepiece of his reading glasses, indicating a migraine on the way. Catherine felt slightly guilty for getting mad, but it was too late to stop now. "What do you mean Warrick's the lead CSI? This is my case. God, first you don't give me anyone, now you're taking the case altogether." She gritted her teeth, not wanting to yell at her boss. Giving a strangled groan, she pressed her fingers into the table until the tips turned white. _Don't get mad, don't get mad, don't get mad, don't get mad._ Silently, she repeated this mantra, praying she didn't strangle Grissom on the spot. "Would there be any reason you're taking me off the case?"

"Catherine, you were attacked." Grissom sounded surprised that she didn't seem to know.

"So? I can handle the case just fine." Catherine stepped forward until she was face to face with Grissom. The older man looked completely unperturbed. "You are not throwing me off of this case." She had no idea why she was so adamant about keeping this case, it would've been over very soon anyway. Maybe it was because of the attack, she wanted to finish what she'd started.

Grissom just sighed, removing his glasses to clean them. "Fine. Stay on the case, Warrick will help you. But at least take the night off. You need it."

Catherine's eyebrows rose in surprise. Grissom was actually telling her to take the night off? "Who are you and what have you done with my boss?"

Grissom gave that little enigmatic grin he got when he found something amusing. "I'll see you tomorrow night. Good night Catherine."

"Your concern is staggering." Catherine deadpanned.

"I'm sorry, would you like me to give you a ride home?"

Catherine gave him a playful punch on the shoulder before heading out. On her way to the locker room, she spotted Kate still in the DNA lab with Mia, sitting in one of the chairs, leaning her head on her arms, a dreamy look on her face. The cause of the look eluded her, but it was one of absolute rapture. With a wry grin, Catherine stopped in. Mia looked up from her desk and smiled. "Hi, Catherine."

"Hey, Mia."

Kate raised her head in the direction of Catherine's voice. "Ms. Willows, hi."

"Kate, please. Just call me Catherine from now on."

"Yes ma'am."

Catherine jerked her head in the general direction of the door. "I'm heading out, do you want me to give you a ride home?" The concern she was suddenly feeling confused the blonde. She'd only just met this girl and already she was offering to give her a ride home. This was the same girl who was supposed to be whiny and complain about everything. But here she was, feeling an almost protective feeling of Kate. Maybe it was just her mothering instinct kicking in.

Kate had shaken her head. "Nah, that's okay. I'll stick it out."

"Won't your parents be worried about you?"

Kate shook her head again, looking a little sad. "They're on an around the world cruise, won't be back for a couple months. I'm on my own right now."

**C**atherine felt another faint ping of mothering in her conscience. That was a lonely existence, just hanging around the house, waiting for the parents to return. She could almost relate, though her mother had never gone on any cruises, she'd just go out on the strip every night and wouldn't be back for a couple days.

**K**ate noticed the sorrowful look on Catherine's face and gave herself a mental kick for bringing up her parents. It looked like a touchy subject with Catherine. But, the older woman quickly shook it off and gave a lopsided grin, deeming everything all right.

"Okay, shift ends at 8 AM. Be here at 8 PM sharp. Got it?"

Kate nodded. "Yes ma'am."

**G**rissom sat in his darkened office, trying to ward off the impending migraine without having to resort to the medication. The noises of the lab did a little to soothe the pounding in his head, but not by much. Removing his glasses, he massaged his orbital sockets absently. Not for the first time, he wished he wasn't supervisor. He loved being a CSI, he loved working with his team, he just wished he didn't have to deal with everything else. The paperwork, the politics, keeping everyone happy. He knew he would get a chewing out from Ecklie once he found out he'd let Catherine stay on the robbery case. After she'd been attacked the first time, a corporate mandate had been put out that if a CSI was in any way attacked on a case, it was handed to another CSI on that shift. But he figured, to hell with politics. Catherine was a good CSI, she knew what she was doing and wouldn't let her personal feelings get involved on the case. At least, he hoped she wouldn't.

He couldn't help but remember the times her emotions had gotten the better of her and had thus made things go from bad to worse. He could still remember the argument they'd had in the parking lot when she told the husband of the woman they found in the lake about her affair. She'd made a cynical comment about living like him, like a hermit. Catherine never knew how much that had stung him, how much that hurt. He'd simply put on a neutral face and gave a perfectly sarcastic response, correcting her. He'd told her to never let personal stuff override her job, that he didn't. Catherine had leaned in, blue eyes fierce and calmly asked him what personal stuff. He'd passively brushed it off and walked away, leaving Catherine wondering. He and Catherine were yin and yang, top and bottom, day and night. She was heart, he was head, and together for nearly fifteen years they were part of the second best crime lab in the country, second only to Quantico.

But there he was, getting off his original subject again. Which brought him to the other woman in his life. Sara Sidle. His female counterpart, as much as she hated that expression. Sara was always the one to keep him on top, keeping him focused. When he'd first met this shy, honest doe-eyed brunette at a conference in San Francisco, he'd known there was something special about her. Throughout the entire conference, she'd done whatever she could to please him, to acquire his rare praise. He could still see her earnest brown eyes watching intensely, seeing if she'd done this or that right. He'd gone out of his way to compliment her; more than the other hopeful CSI's there, and they knew it. After the conference, they'd kept in touch, calling each other every so often to tell each other how it was going. About three weeks before the thing with Warrick and Holly Gribbs, she'd sounded off, almost tired, like she was wearing out. He'd taken it almost as a sign when Gribbs was shot, although it killed him to have to bring someone from the outside to investigate one of his best CSI's.

Then again, if that whole mess hadn't gone down, Sara would've never come to Vegas, would've continued at her job in San Francisco, and would've gone down in the continuous spiral she'd been slipping into at the job. Most importantly, she would've never met Catherine. So indeed, the ends did justify the means, in a wretched degree. After all this musing, Grissom was amazed to find his migraine reduced to a simple headache, something he could easily deal with. Pulling out the left side drawer on his desk, he grabbed a bottle of aspirin and popped two dry, hoping it would help. There was a light knock on the door, he saw the silhouetted form of Nick Stokes in the glass door. He opened the door spilling light over Grissom's office and paused.

"Whoa, who turned out the lights?"

"What do you need Nick?" Grissom called from the dark.

"Hey, Grissom." Nick settled into one of the chairs that faced the desk. "Man, is Catherine really all right? She looked a little spooked when she left just now."

Grissom's stomach twisted slightly; had it really been a good idea to put her back on the case? Taking a deep breath, he silently assured himself it was fine. Catherine was an adult too, she could handle it. "I'm sure she's fine Nick."

Nick looked at him, brown eyes worried, but being the good CSI he was, he didn't question his supervisor's judgments.

**A**cross town at 1630 Coral Place, Catherine parked her car in the driveway and leaned back against the seat, taking a deep breath. She was okay, really. Just fine. This wasn't bothering her one bit. _Bullshit_, the voice in her head said calmly. And it was right. She could still feel the apprehension realizing the perp might still be on the premises. She could still feel the chill that swept through her when she realized the noise was coming from inside the store. She could still feel the anxiety at the thought of Kate getting hurt, though that did puzzle her somewhat. She'd only just met her then, and didn't really know her that well. Why did she feel this almost proprietary feeling toward Kate, why did she feel like she needed to protect her at all costs? It confused the hell out of her.

There was a knock on her window, scaring her half to death. Catherine started, looking out the window. Sara stood there, watching her worriedly. Lowering the window, Catherine grinned, trying to get her heart-rate down to normal after it had skyrocketed. "Hey, sweetheart. What's going on?"

"Warrick just called. Catherine did you get attacked on a crime scene?"

Catherine groaned inwardly, making a mental note to throttle Warrick when she got to work. "A perp blitzed me from behind. It's just a cut, that's all."

"He said you lost consciousness." Sara looked annoyed and worried at the same time. "Why didn't you call me?"

Catherine turned off the car and opened the door. "I didn't want you to worry."

"Well, I'm worried now." Sara glared at her, holding back the tears. "I don't know what I would've done if that guy really hurt you."

Catherine pulled Sara into a hug, careful to mind the cane that was held tightly in Sara's right hand. Sara held her close, as if she'd never see her again. "Are you sure you're okay?" She murmured.

"Aside from lack of oxygen, I'm fine." Catherine replied calmly.

"Oh, sorry." Sara pulled back, clearing her throat nervously.

Catherine noticed how tired the younger woman looked and tugged lightly on her arm. "Come on, let's get inside before you fall down."

**B**ack at the lab, Kate was still in the DNA lab, listening eagerly as Mia spoke patiently about alleles when there was a knock at the door. Both looked up to see Warrick standing there.

"Hey, Mia. Did you get anything from the sample Catherine sent down here?"

Mia nodded. "Yeah, got a hit." She rolled the chair over to the printer where the readout had just printed.

Kate tried to stay out of Warrick's sight, she was still a little nervous from his outburst at the store. She tried to make herself look busy at the desk she was sitting in, but there was really nothing there except a few pieces of blank printer paper. Thankfully, Mia diverted his attention just then holding the piece of paper.

"DNA came back as one Robert Funt. They got his DNA when he was collared for assault a couple years back. Current residence unknown. It's circumstantial anyway, it only proves he was at the store and cut his hand on the counter."

Warrick nodded, studying the paper. "Not if those bullets come back to a gun registered to Mr. Funt." He looked up at Kate. "You want to help me check out the bullets?"

Kate felt her eyebrows raising. "You mean you're not mad at me?"

"About what?"

"About getting Catherine hurt."

Warrick sighed, thinking on his answer. "Nah. It wasn't your fault the officer didn't clear the scene properly. I'm sorry I got in your face like that, it wasn't my place."

Kate shrugged, just happy that the lab didn't hate her. "It's no biggie."

**A**t the Willows' residence, Catherine and Sara were getting ready for bed. Lindsey had long since retired to her room for whatever teenage girls did before bed. Catherine emerged from the bathroom, teeth brushed, hair pulled back, and pajama clad, ready for bed. The cut on her forehead had gotten a little red, but so far no bruise had come up. Still hurt like a bitch though. Absently, she rubbed it as she sat down on the bed. Sara looked up from her book, and cocked her eyebrow in the look that was famously known throughout CSI.

"You're sure you're all right?" She asked worriedly.

Catherine laughed softly. Sara Sidle was not well know for just leaving things where they were. "I'm fine, seriously. It's just a little cut."

Sara frowned, marking her place and setting the book down. "I meant psychologically. This is the second time you've been attacked at a crime scene."

With a sigh, Catherine paused to think on her answer. It was the second time, but she wasn't sure how she felt about it just yet. She wasn't as scared as the first time she'd been assaulted, but the apprehension was there nonetheless. Glancing over, Catherine saw Sara watching her expectantly. With a lopsided grin, she changed her position until she was lying sideways on the bed, looking up at Sara. "I'm fine. I'm a little nervous about this, but it won't affect my job. Happy now?" To change the subject, she picked up the book Sara had been reading. "_The Life Cycle of the Dung Beetle. _Interesting bedtime reading, present from Grissom?"

Sara grinned wryly, putting the book on the table. "Yeah, Christmas present from last year."

Catherine rolled over, pulling the covers back for both of them. "Funny. I got one on the timeline of different species' larval periods."

Sara chuckled lightly, pulling the blankets up. Catherine sighed and leaned up, giving the younger woman a good-night kiss. She'd meant for it to be a short kiss goodnight, but Sara had leaned closer, lacing her fingers through the soft hair at the base of her neck, pulling close. Gently, Catherine put a reassuring hand on Sara's arm, letting her know everything was all right. Once they pulled away, Sara smiled slightly, embarrassed at her sudden insecurity. Catherine smiled back, silently comforting the brunette. The smile twisted into a lopsided grin as she moved forward to give Sara a light-hearted peck on the nose. "Sleep tight, sweetheart."

**A**bsolutely exhausted, but happier than she had been in a long while, Kate flopped into bed at 8:46 AM. Kicking off her shoes, she snuggled under the comforter, normal clothes and all, too tired to change. A goofy grin spread across her face as she lay there, thinking about the previous night. She'd accompanied Warrick to ballistics where Bobby had indeed informed them that the bullets belonged to a Winchester rifle, owned by a Robert Funt. The same Robert Fun as on the DNA report. It appeared that this case was an open and shut. Still, Kate was just happy to actually be a part of something important. She knew that their workdays weren't as exciting as the one she'd just been through, but she had to admit, even the lab work was fulfilling and most people couldn't say that. As she drifted to sleep to the sound of a garbage truck banging around, Kate's last conscious thought was she couldn't wait to get back to work that night.

* * *

_Mia is my favorite lab tech (apart from Bobby D...and Archie...and Jacqui...aw, heck, I love 'em all.) and I wanted to put a little of her in here. You'll probably find more of her as the story wears on. (I hope) Uh, the book title is mine, I made it up. I am so sorry it took me so long to update (and that it's so short), I had a terrible case of writer's block over the past few weeks. Please review and help inspire me!_


	5. Trip to the Morgue

A/N: Hello, again folks. Okay, I'm trying to keep Kate from sliding into the 'Mary-Sue' category, so if she starts slipping a little too far into perfection, let me know. If Greg and Grissom seem a little OOC, it's because try as hard as I could, I could not get into their heads. So, sorry in advance. Also, Grissom may be socially inept, but in my opinion, he's a natural gentleman. If you disagree…tough.

A/N #2: I have no idea what it looks like from CSI to the morgue, so there's a little creative license there.

DISCLAIMER: While not particularly stating any proprietary rights, I am forewarning you. The first part of this deals with some serious issues and is probably not the best for some of our more sensitive readers. So, if you are in any way squeamish about certain things, please tread carefully.

* * *

**K**ate arrived at eight the following night, trying desperately to stay awake. Rearranging her biological clock was easier said than done. On top of that, she'd gotten a call from Jason at about eleven in the morning, waking her up from three hours of sleep. While she'd patiently listened to Jason babble on about how _cool_ the day shift was and how much fun he was having, after five minutes, she's accidentally fallen asleep on him. Opening the doors to the building, Kate recalled with a grin the livid tone of Jason's voice when he'd called her back later that day. Shaking her head, replaying the enraged rant from him, she waved to the other secretary and headed back to one of the rooms where she could see Nick and Greg drinking coffee. Hesitantly, she made her way in, heading for the coffee pot; last night and the previous day had been murder on her biological clock and she needed anything with caffeine badly. Nick noticed her beeline for the pot and raised his own in salute. "Welcome to the Night Shift."

Kate grinned wryly at him as she poured a hot cup of sludge in her Styrofoam cup. Greg looked up and grimaced. "No, no. Let me get you some of the good stuff. You deserve it after having to put up with Catherine for half the night."

Kate opened her mouth to object to the playful insult, but just shook her head instead. Guys. Greg set his own mug on the table and walked over to a second, more hidden pot. The smell was enticing as he pulled out another cup and poured some of the brew into it. With a devilish grin, he held it out to Kate. "Try that, Madame."

Kate grinned and took the cup, taking a sip. A warm, almost cinnamony flavor swept over her taste buds as the coffee swirled around in her mouth. It was absolutely delicious. "Wow, Greg. This is really good. Your own special brew?"

"Yes ma'am. Only the best for Las Vegas' finest." Greg grinned again and went back to his own coffee.

"Isn't it awesome?" Nick asked, not looking up from the sporting magazine he was reading.

Kate took another sip. "Oh, yeah." She smiled, tentatively sitting down in one the chairs, still sipping the divine coffee. This was cool, her just hanging out with the team like this; it made her feel-just for a moment-like she was really part of something. She took another sip of her coffee; aside from tasting wonderful, it gave her a much needed energy boost. The break room was small, quiet with a nice couch and a couple bookshelves full of books and magazines and well worn forensic journals. She turned to see Nick watching her curiously. "What?"

"How was it last night?"

Kate shrugged. "It was all right. Staying up till the wee hours of the morning was kind of weird, but hey, I'm a high school student, I'll live."

"What grade are you in?" Greg piped up.

"I'll be a senior this coming up semester."

"What do you plan to do after you get out of high school?" Nick asked, setting his magazine down.

"UNLV." Kate answered automatically, she'd been planning this since freshman year. "I'm planning on following in my dad's footsteps."

"What's your dad do?"

"Well, now he's an anatomy professor, but he used to be a coroner and that's what I want to do." Kate watched the two closely, gauging their reactions. Everyone else she'd told that to either wrinkled their nose in disgust or looked at her in absolute amazement. Greg's eyebrow rose for a second, but he just shrugged and went back to his coffee. Nick was watching her passively. "Sounds cool. I mean, that's a definite difference from the career plans of most girls your age."

"Oh, you mean the," she sat up straight, flipping her hair around in a perfect imitation of most high school girls, "the ones who like, who want to be like, models and like, clothing designers, and like, all that?" She asked, raising her voice to a nasal pitch.

Nick grinned and laughed. He opened his mouth to say something, but before he could, Grissom came in, holding assignment slips. He peered curiously at Kate through his reading glasses for a moment and Kate was worried she might have to introduce herself all over again. But then, Grissom nodded as if remembering. "Kate." He said to himself. "Internship program."

Kate nodded in affirmative and he continued heading to his seat at the head of the table. He seemed completely unperturbed to have a person who'd only shown up the night before sitting quite comfortably at his table drinking coffee, talking with the guys. Kate liked him already. For a moment, the three of them sat in silence waiting for Catherine and Warrick to appear. As if summoned by their very thoughts, Catherine came sweeping into the room, followed closely by Warrick. They'd been speaking softly to each other as they came into the room. Grissom looked up from the paper, observing them over the tops of his glasses as they sat down.

"I'm glad you two decided to grace us with your presence." He said sarcastically.

Warrick just shook his head. "Sorry man, traffic jam on the way."

"Fine. Catherine, what's your excuse?"

Catherine just gave a flirtatious smile, completely impervious to her boss' grumpiness. "Sorry, Gil. Sara still can't drive, so I had to get Lindsey over to day camp."

"How is Sara?" Nick asked concernedly.

Catherine grinned again. "Doing fine. Can't wait to get back to work. Doctor says she'll probably be able to come back in about a week."

Kate felt her brows furrowing. This was the second time someone had mentioned a person named Sara. From what small information she'd gathered from Catherine and Grissom's repartee the night before and this little tidbit, Sara was one of the team but was out with an injury. She made a mental note to ask someone about it later. Grissom returned to his paperwork. "All right, Warrick, you and Catherine are working that homicide right?"

Catherine nodded. "Yeah, we're going to finish the lab work and Vega's bringing the suspect down for questioning."

"Okay. Get started on that. Nick, you'll be working the DB on the other side of town." He looked up. "Greg, you and I will keep working on the Gregory case." He turned to look at Kate, "Kate, while they do that, you'll be helping us with our case."

Kate sat up, eyes wide. "Really?" She asked eagerly.

"Really."

Now that everyone had their cases, they left in a hurry. Catherine headed out first, followed by Warrick, Nick not far behind. They disappeared down the hall, laughing and talking. Silently, Grissom gathered his papers and rose, not checking to see if his two protégés were behind him; it was automatically assumed that they would know enough to follow him. Kate was up first, Greg right beside her. They fell into an easy step behind the older man, Greg starting an casual conversation with her. She liked the young man even more than she had the night before, he was quirky and had a wonderful sense of humor, but underneath, Kate could sense a particular peace to him as well. Behind all the silly humor and off the wall jokes was a guy who _could_ be calm, just didn't feel like it. For a moment, they walked along in silence as Grissom walked a few steps ahead. Kate slipped her hands in her pockets out of habit. Suddenly, she was hit with a sudden thought.

"Greg?" She said.

"Yeah?" He answered.

"Who's Sara?" Kate asked curiously. "I hear everyone talking about her, but I've never met her."

"Oh," Greg grinned, as if suddenly embarrassed by something. "Sara is Sara Sidle, a CSI who also works here. About a month ago, she was on a case and she slipped down a flight of stairs."

"Why's that funny?"

"Oh, I'm not laughing at that. Just a nervous habit. Anyway, you'll probably be meeting her when she comes back to work next week." He stopped for a moment to look at her. "I think the two of you will get along pretty well. You both are the only people to have ever stood up to Catherine in a bad mood and lived."

With a laugh, Kate grinned, realizing that Catherine seemed to be the butt of quite a few good-natured jokes. But, she made a mental note not to make any herself, she had the most uncanny bad timing and would more than likely end up making one as soon as the blonde walked into the room.

Grissom paused at a particular lab and turned back to the two. "Greg, I need you to check out Trace on the bottle and DNA. Kate, are you okay to come in the morgue?"

Kate nodded. "Sure. My dad used to be a coroner, so I'm okay with all the dead bodies." It felt slightly redundant repeating this information, but she had a feeling she'd be telling it quite a few times before this internship was over. Grissom nodded and turned to continue walking. Greg gave her a little salute before entering the lab. "Hodges!" She heard him say with false cheerfulness. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw the same man with the drawn face looking up at Greg with disdain and annoyance. Smirking, Kate turned back, her eyes following the soft blue of Grissom's denim shirt. She took a few big steps to match pace with the older man; while Grissom didn't acknowledge her presence, she noticed he slowed his walk by the tiniest bit to accommodate her. While this would have surprised any LVPD CSI, Kate simply noticed it and smiled, glad there were at least a few gentlemen left in the world.

The two walked quietly through empty, winding hallways and Kate prayed Grissom would accompany her back because there was no way she would remember the route. Kate wasn't someone who needed to fill the quiet with chatter, she was perfectly comfortable floating around in her own thoughts until she reached her destination. But, she would talk if she had a question on her brain.

"What's the case?' She asked, wincing slightly as her voice reverberated somewhat in the vacant hall.

Grissom checked the file in his hand. "Uh, rape homicide. Woman was found out in the desert, shot execution style, beaten, raped both sexually and with a foreign object."

With a sigh, Kate cast her eyes downward in instinctive respect. While she knew this was the way of the world, it didn't stop it from hurting. Without realizing it, she sent up a silent little prayer that they would be able to help this woman rest in peace.

Finally, they came to a halt in a little hall lined with metal gurneys and small chairs. A set of double doors was on each side of the hall. Grissom opened a door to their right and pulled out two white lab coats. He handed one to Kate before putting one on himself. Slinging it over her shoulders, Kate snorted in amusement when the hems of the coat came just below her knees. She'd endured teasing most of her life, she was always the smallest, shortest kid in her class, but after about twelve years of mockery, even she found it funny. Grissom didn't notice her wardrobe difficulties, he was already pulling open one of the double doors. Inside, Kate quickly figured out it was an autopsy room. An older man with close-cut white hair and beard stood over an autopsy table, looking over a body. Kate recognized him immediately. Dr. Al Robbins; he'd been on night shift for as long as she could remember, he and her dad, the day and night of the morgue.

Kate grinned, seeing an old friend. "Hey old man." She said before she could think about it. Grissom, who'd been heading for the table stopped suddenly and looked back at her in surprise. He opened his mouth, more than likely for a rebuke towards Kate's impudent statement, but before her could, Dr. Robbins just laughed.

"It's okay Gil, I've known that little monster since she could barely walk." He said genially. With a warm smile, he grabbed the crutch that was never far from his side and made his way over to give Kate a hug.

Once they were finished, Kate almost laughed at the confused look on Grissom's face. "My dad used to be head coroner on days."

Grissom nodded, now understanding. Dr. Robbins walked back to the autopsy table, Kate and Grissom following. He picked up a piece of paper attached a clipboard and checked it. Grissom got to the table before Kate, blocking her view. Rolling her eyes, Kate quickly sidestepped the supervisor and almost collapsed. She knew that face. She knew the woman. Kate's stomach tightened into a little ball and her throat suddenly felt like a pound of sand had been poured down it. All sound seemed to fade out and her vision was reduced to the pale, bruised woman on the table. Wendy Gregory.

"Oh, God." The words slipped out before she realized it. "Wendy." Her voice seemed faraway, as if she were hearing it on a television set three rooms away. Wendy Gregory. Used to babysit her in the neighborhood she used to live in. Straight-A student, valedictorian of her class, full scholarship to UNLV. It was almost surreal seeing her like this. Her skin was pale as a sheet of paper, and she could see the lines around her eyes. Though she couldn't have been more than thirty years old, she looked a good ten years past that. The world had not been kind to her; that much was obvious.

She could hear Dr. Robbins voice just barely over the ringing that seemed to be in her ears. "_Tox came back with traces of cocaine and alcohol, double the legal limit. Track marks, looks like she's been a user for quite a while. Definite signs of trauma. Major lacerations on the cervix and vaginal area. Traces of something left behind, sent them to Hodges for analysis. Cylindrical shaped bruises along her back, it looks like the perp beat her with something about two inches in diameter. Fractured ribs…" _

Brain on autopilot, Kate felt herself moving quickly backwards, uttering a quiet apology before she stumbled out of the room. Tripping on her own feet, Kate lurched forward, spinning unintentionally until her back met a wall. She clapped a hand over her mouth as her body tried to react the only way it could after seeing something like that. Fighting the intense nausea down, Kate sobbed silently into her hand. She shook her head, trying to get her thoughts in order. It seemed like the entire room was spinning. Flashes of memories played in her head; she hadn't seen Wendy in almost eight years, but suddenly they were just coming in waves. Normally, she was a very controlled, composed person; it took a lot to get through to her and this seemed to have done the trick. Slowly her hand dropped as the initial wave of panic wore off.

One of the doors opened and Grissom came rushing out, looking panicked. He looked around for a moment until he spotted Kate sitting on the floor.

**I**gnoring his protesting knees, Grissom knelt to check on the intern. It had scared him quite a bit when he saw her face go a dead white and watched her hightail it out of the room. From what he'd gathered from the girl, she seemed to be someone who didn't usually do that and he needed to know how this was getting to her. Kate looked up at him, her eyes distant and watery. She smiled tremblingly.

"I'm sorry," She croaked, "I didn't mean to run out like that."

"Well, why did you run out like that?" Grissom asked concernedly. He knew this was more Catherine's area of expertise, but she wasn't there at the moment, so it seemed to be up to him to figure out what had the young intern wound so tight.

Kate sighed and rubbed her eyes. "I, just…I…I know…her."

Grissom's brow furrowed. "Who, Wendy Gregory?"

Kate nodded. "Yeah. She, uh…she used to babysit me, when I was…" She took a deep breath, "When I was little."

That would definitely explain her sudden reaction to the case. Grissom sighed, moving himself into a more comfortable position; this certainly complicated things a bit. While Kate was just an intern, objectivity ruled this world, he couldn't have someone letting their personal feelings push through. Especially someone who wasn't an employee of LVPD; the defense would have a field day if an intern messed up a case because they had an emotional attachment to the vic. Instinctively, he placed his index finger over his upper lip, pressing down slightly as he thought.

**T**his was it, Kate knew it. This was when she got thrown out of the program; it was just her second day and already she'd let a senior CSI get hurt and had completely lost it when they put her on another case. She could almost see the wheels turning in Grissom's head as he sat beside her. Kate closed her eyes, cursing herself for losing it like that. The anger at herself was in all honesty completely irrational, she knew that, but that didn't stop her from berating herself for not being objective. The two warring voices in her head drowned out all other sound; she was only jolted out of her internal criticism when she heard someone shouting her name. In surprise, she turned to see Grissom watching her curiously.

"Did you say something?" She asked, trying to ignore the voice in her head telling her to chalk up one more infraction.

Grissom nodded. "I asked you if you could handle this or do you need to be on another case."

Kate blinked in surprise. Was he asking what she thought he was asking? Was he actually giving her another chance? She'd probably been one of the worst interns in the world in the span of maybe 30 hours and here he was, giving her another shot. For someone who was used to always messing up, someone who was used to everyone shooing her off somewhere else, this was mind-blowing. As she got over the shock of the idea, Kate considered Grissom's question. Hesitantly, her mind wandered back to the image of Wendy on that table, and her stomach threatened to revolt. Robbins' words came back to haunt her, "_Track marks, looks like she's been a user for quite a while._" That mixed with the latent memories of Wendy from when she was little just didn't seem to mix well. She knew there would be too much a risk of her emotions playing off each other; there was no way she could even handle the thought of not catching Wendy's killer.

With a sigh, Kate shook her head, putting a hand to her forehead in a sign of defeat. Despite Grissom's well-intentioned words of comfort, she still felt like a loser, like a wimp. It was humiliating almost, and she didn't know why. It almost felt like it was humiliating that she'd been caught experiencing emotions. Thought most people didn't know it, she had this sort of fascia that she put up around herself. She didn't cry openly, she didn't let things like this get to her. Vaguely, she heard Grissom's cell phone click open and the sound of a button being pressed.

"Catherine, it's Grissom." There was a pause. "No, nothing's wrong." Grissom chuckled lightly. "No, no she didn't." Kate had a suspicion that comment was directed towards her. "There's been a change of plans. Can you come and get Kate? I think it'd be more fruitful if she saw a little bit more of the lab before she came down to the morgue." Another pause. "Because I'd feel more comfortable if she were with you than Greg. Okay, all right. Fine." The phone clicked closed and Kate looked up at Grissom. His face was passive, but she could swear she could see his blue eyes twinkling.

"I've got to get back in there," Grissom spoke as he pushed himself to his feet, "Catherine will be here in about five minutes."

Kate, who had the heels of her hands pressed deep in her orbital sockets, just nodded. A door squeaked, swinging open and closed, leaving Kate to recover by herself.

**H**igh-heeled boots clicked loudly in the empty hall as Catherine walked quickly down to the morgue. _Click-click. Click-click. Click-click._ Her footsteps seemed to reverberate against the plain, white walls. Absently, Catherine wondered what Kate could've done for Grissom to send her off the case. Had to be something big, Grissom was unusually tolerant of most things, as long as they got the work done. Contaminated evidence maybe? No, Grissom would've told her that. More than likely, Kate wasn't really ready to handle the sight of a dead body. Then again, she did pretty well with the stiff in the store. Catherine mulled this over as she stepped into the Morgue. Two sneaker-clad feet were poking out from behind a sheet covered gurney. Curiously, Catherine very carefully walked forward, bending down to get a better look. Getting past the gurney, she blinked in surprise seeing Kate sitting there, looking absolutely miserable.

_Oh, great, _was Catherine's first thought, _what's Grissom done now?_

* * *

Reviews are what make this little world go 'round. Just press that little button and tell me what you think! 


	6. One More Chance

A/N: Guys, I'm so sorry. I know it's short, but I've got a wicked case of writer's block and school started a couple weeks ago, so I'm also sorry it took me so long to even get this part out. I promise I will update and the chapters will be longer.

**S**o lost in her own thoughts, Kate hadn't even heard Catherine come in. She was only aware that there was someone else other than her in the hall when she saw a curtain of strawberry blonde hair a few inches in front of her knees. Slowly, she raised her head to see Catherine looking worried and slightly annoyed.

"Do I really need to ask?"

Kate shook her head. "I'd rather you not."

Catherine nodded, straightening. Pulling her shirt back into place, she glanced toward the autopsy room door. Kate followed her gaze curiously, wondering if throughout this entire thing, someone had been sitting there, watching her humiliating breakdown. But the hallway was empty save for the two of them. Kate looked back to Catherine, who was frowning, biting her lower lip.

She gave a minute shake of her head and turned to Kate. "I'll be right back."

Kate nodded, trying to figure out what was going on. Why did Catherine need to go in the autopsy room? She watched the older woman disappear through the swinging doors; wincing at her creaking knees, Kate stood, wiping her eyes. This was stupid and she knew it, she needed to suck it up and get over it. There was a case she couldn't handle, big deal; that happened all the time. So why was she so wound up about this? Leaning against a table, Kate viciously rubbed her eyes, trying to get over this embarrassment. She heard the door swing open again, and looked up. Catherine was coming through, looking completely calm, but there was a gentle understanding in her blue eyes. Kate immediately knew that Grissom had told her what happened. Fire raced through her veins, turning her ears and jaw a bright red. That was just great, pretty soon the entire lab would know she'd lost it. She studied the floor with careful intensity.

"So, I'm guessing Mr. Grissom told you, huh?" Kate slipped off the lab coat and placed it in Catherine's outstretched hand.

Catherine looked at her curiously as she put the coat away. "Told me what?"

In relief, Kate smiled. "Thanks." Her respect for Catherine Willows was growing by the hour.

Catherine just winked. "No problem." She jerked her head toward the door, heading in that direction as Kate shed her coat, jogging slightly to catch up with the blonde. Relief was coursing through her, almost to the point where she was gushing with praise for Catherine Willows. But she kept her mouth shut, wanting to appear somewhat like a professional. Also, she was lost in her thoughts, regarding Wendy Gregory. What on earth had happened in the six years since she'd seen her? The woman she'd loved and admired years ago had turned into an addict and alcoholic? It was throwing Kate for the loop. She just couldn't mix the two images together. Wendy had been an avid sponsor to 'Just Say No' programs forever. Had she been a user back then and the whole thing was a lie? If not, what event could've sent her spiraling down so far? Kate's brain spun with the possibilities. Vaguely, she could hear someone talking around her, but she couldn't make out what they were saying, she was so lost in her own thoughts. It wasn't until two fingers snapped in front of her face that she actually blinked. Jolted out of her reverie, Kate looked around and saw Catherine watching in annoyance.

"Have you heard a word I just said?" She asked irritably.

Wincing, Kate shook her head. "Sorry Catherine, I kinda got lost in my own head." She cringed, waiting for the inevitably verbal blow. Third chance and she'd already blown it. Nice going Kate, jeez, could she do anything right? This was no time to start daydreaming. Anxiously, she watched Catherine, waiting for the anger, but Catherine just frowned slightly and shook her head. "I know she was a friend of yours, but if you're going to work with me, you've got stay focused, okay? I already have one colleague who's lost in his head all day, I don't need another one."

Kate nodded. "Yes ma'am, I understand."

Catherine nodded. "Good."


End file.
